HOLIDAY HOUNDS: In December, apparel and home goods retailer Land’s End touted its pet gear as a way for dog owners to treat their canine companions during the holidays without breaking the bank. The Land’s End pet line is comprised of several items, including dog beds, leashes, collars and jackets. All items are priced under $50.

REHAB SPONSOR: Ball Dynamics International LLC of Longmont, Colo., is now the official sponsor of the University of Tennessee’s Certificate Program in Canine Physical Rehab. The program began using the company’s new FitPAWS products in their teaching labs in January.

RESEARCH GRANT: Carrie Miller, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, of Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital in Wheat Ridge, Colo., recently received a grant from the North American Pet Health Insurance Association to support further research of mutating bacterial pneumonia and other respiratory illness in large breed dogs. The grant is due, in part, to her work with Heimdall, a deaf Great Dane that had a complicated form of recurring bacterial pneumonia that mutated each time Miller tried a new or different level of antibiotic. The grant provides a $500 recognition award to Miller and further financial support for publication of Miller’s data regarding respiratory illness in large breed dogs.

TiE WINNER: Vestaron Corp. of Kalamazoo, Mich., was recently named a “TiE Midwest 20” winner in the life sciences category during the TiECon Midwest annual conference in October. TiE is a global, nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship. Vestaron is developing a new generation of insecticides based on the peptides spiders use to kill insects.

HOLIDAY ER: Gastritis/enteritis, lacerations or bite wounds, soft tissue trauma, foreign body ingestion and chocolate poisoning are the top five reasons why pet owners spend Christmas Day at the veterinarian’s office, according to Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI), which analyzed claims submitted in 2008 for pets treated on Dec. 25. The Brea, Calif.-based company noted that the claims skew toward accidents requiring emergency treatment probably because most regular veterinary clinics are closed on Dec. 25. The other days of the year, claims for medical conditions such as skin allergies, ear infections and urinary tract infections prove far more common than claims for the majority of conditions treated on Christmas Day, according to VPI.

CASEY PROMO: Casey Petraceuticals LLC, a Durham, N.C.-based manufacturer of pet supplements, launched an online promotion in December 2009 entitled “Casey Wants You.” The promotion is aimed at getting the word out about the company’s product line. During the promotion, which ends Jan. 31, customers who tweet, blog or post a comment on selected websites about their support for Casey Pets’ Essential Supplements will be entered to win $100 toward a future vet bill.

NEW NAME: Feeding Pets of the Homeless has changed its name to Pets of the Homeless to better reflect the overall work they do. The national volunteer nonprofit organization collects pet food and awards grants to veterinarians that administer vaccines and medical care to pets of the homeless and needy. <HOME>